Chessieabernathy‌:

ask me unconventional/random “TOP 3/5/10″ end of the year lists!

monty-santos‌:

“I’ve been back since the day after Freya’s funeral, I couldn’t be a ticket back in time,” Monty sighed, a shadow passing over his face as he had yet another reminder of all the death that had decided to come for his family this year.  And while he tried to push the unexpected pangs of grief back tot he back of his head, Monty knew that it was still probably written all over his face.  “I actually don’t really drink anymore, to be honest. I mean, I’m still working on completely stopping, but I actually converted to Buddhism and it’s greatly looked down upon since you’re supposed to abstain from things that can cloud the mind. But I will take any other recommendations that you’ve got.  Are you planning on going to France at some point soon?” he asked, mostly out of curiosity.  “I’ve gotten the word out and a few people have.  Sheridan, I don’t know if you’ve met her yet, actually donated what I’m pretty sure was about half a Target.  So it helps, there’s just also need for more.”

He had heard things, heard about people dying but they could’ve been just rumors. Unfortunately, they weren’t. “Shit, you’re really a Buddhist now? What do you do if you don’t drink now?” He asked, thoroughly confused. “I don’t know if I can recommend anything else since that counts out everything else,” Ben was always into clouding his judgment, “I’m not sure when we’re going to go back. I have some things to do here and then hopefully that’ll be one of the first stops.” He was optimistic that they wouldn’t be here for too long. “Nope, I haven’t met her yet,” He actually didn’t mind being out of the loop abroad but now that he was home, he was curious about everything. “At least someone’s helping out that’s got the money.”

chessieabernathy‌:

Chessie knows he’s trying to keep this casual, trying his best to push past the tension between them and have a semi-normal conversation. You could see it from a mile away. “The truth will set you free,” she comments easily, taking another puff of her cigarette. She’s unsure how to reply to him – Ben makes it sound like something mundane happened, as if he forgot King’s birthday or was late to dinner. There was no way for her to respond to his comment properly, she decided. There was no way to string together a sentence that was anything short of her telling him King was justified. “It’s not any different for how you are normally,” she finds herself tease, hoping to keep up the light and airy conversation, rather than get into the gritty details he surely wants to ask about. At the mention of O, Chessie purses her lips into a thin line for a moment, biting the inside of her cheek. “We’ve spoken,” she opens with, “It’s been… complicated. With work.” 

"That’s why I’ve never been a fan of the truth,” He joked. Was it bad or good that they could be joking together? Especially after what had happened. The big elephant in the room, or rather the air, in this case, was still there. He wanted to ask her more but knew it wasn’t his place to do so. He didn’t know her like that. “And that’s why I don’t work.” He acknowledged, “It seems too stressful.” The truth was, Ben didn’t have any skills anyways. “Do you think I’d make a good model? I know Paris pretty well.” He had no idea what being a model consisted of but he was trying to keep their conversation as light as she was. “You know if you ever need to get out of the house or whatever, you’re always welcome to give me a call. I’m usually not busy. And it’ll be a nice break for me too. O’s also pissed at me.” 

what's it like being back in the city?

“It’s starting to feel like I never left. Shit goes down around here that wouldn’t happen anywhere else.” Sometimes he felt like New York was suffocating. “And it wasn’t this cold in some areas of Europe.”

planning on running back to europe now that something has gone wrong?

“Where I go is none of anyone’s business.” He answered. He was a bit defensive when it came to running away. Yes, he was a wimp when it came to facing his consequences but that was for him and only him to admit to himself. “Right now, I’m staying here.” He was at least going to finish what he started here. Beyond that was a mystery to him. “I don’t know who this concerns anyways.” He’d keep King in the loop and well, anyone else didn’t matter. “Thanks for the concern, though.” 

monty-santos‌:

“I don’t know, I’ve never tried to check out more than two at once,” Monty chuckled, as he started looking around and picking and picking a direction, “Going to Times Square is pretty much the opposite of the point of wandering around.  It’s way too crowded,” he said as he shoved his hands in his pockets, “And think about it. Most of them have vacation time that they can have whenever they want, so they’ll try to go in what they think is the off-season, which is why they’re here.  Or it’s the only time that they can get off.  Either way it’s not the same ones every day, and I’m sure that there were people who thought the same thing about you when you were traveling.  I just try to let them do their thing, because they’re happy and not really hurting anyone. Plus they boost the city’s economy and that’s always a good thing.”

“You should try that next time and see how many they let you take,” He suggested. “Let's go to the library first and do it.” Ben always likes to test the limits and see how much he can actually get away with. Although that shot him in the foot on New Year’s Eve. “But New York City? Out of everywhere? Why not the Keys or the Bahamas? Who would want to vacation here?” Maybe it was because he grew up and he wasn’t very fond of the city. The city has always been the place where he has fucked up the most. “I never looked like a tourist,” He argued, “I fit in all around Europe.” He insisted. “I mean the economy would be fine without a billion tourists. It costs five bucks to get water at some places here. And people around here will pay for that. I think it’s more of the desire to live here.”  

chessieabernathy‌:

“I’ll save it for tomorrow morning during the hangover breakfast,” She held up her hands to show she meant no harm. “Not trying to have a bad time? You could’a fooled me, B. All you’ve done since got here is mop.” She rolled her eyes at him, finishing off her champagne before abandoning it on the end table. “Now you’re speaking my language,” Chessie perked up at the mention of gin and tonic, her go to drink. She didn’t wait for him to follow along, instead – Chessie began her way to the bar. “C’mon, the bartender asked for my number, so I think I can charm him into pouring heavy.”

"As long as I still can get my morning smoke in, do whatever you want,” He insisted. “It is your place after all. If I were you, I’d be walking around here pantsless always,” He chuckled, “Hey, I have not just moped around here. I’ve done more than that. I’ve looked out the window a few times,” He really should get out more. He just didn’t want to. 

Alcohol tasted pretty damn bad to him. Beer was an acquired taste but gin was not his favorite liquor out there. “Fine,” He agreed as he followed her, “Wait, did you give it to him? If he asks for my phone number, I’m gonna tell him I don’t have a phone.”

quinnxarchibald‌:

Listening to Ben’s words, Quinn tilted his head to the side a bit, trying to think of what to say. Unable to stop his brain to mouth filter from working, he began to reply. “I can’t just forget it.” He admitted, shaking his head. “I can’t forget that we punched each other just like I can’t forget what you did and I can’t forget that we used to be best friends. Forgetting about it isn’t going to solve anything.” Quinn finished, wincing inwardly at the fact that he’d actually said that. He’d been planning on just agreeing and walking away. 

His heart sank at the mention of best friends. They were best friends, two peas in a pod. That was before he decided to up and leave, a spur of the moment decision. “I know,” He finally admitted. He still didn’t want to do this here. Not when he still wasn’t ready. “Let's just try not to punch each other inside of O and Chessie’s place anymore.” He suggested. “I regret punching you back,” He said with a sigh. That was a step in the right direction at least. “I just wasn’t expecting it.” So maybe he shouldn’t have ignored the whole part about the two of them being best friends but how was he even supposed to begin that conversation? “So how about a truce shot or two?”

@monty-santos

It was that strange time between Christmas and New Years Eve which meant plenty of tourists. Even on the Upper East Side. They were everywhere. Over the course of the past week, he had been thinking about Monty and his offer to volunteer. He’d never volunteer, ever. However, it didn’t hurt to at least check out one of the shelters he was talking about. And by checking out, he was just standing near it. When Ben was a bit tense, his automatic response was to take out a cigarette from his pack and light it up. He was still uncomfortable in the city, he felt like all eyes were on him. Whether that was the case or not was yet to be determined. 

Speaking of the Devil, or rather Angel in this case, Ben perked up. What were the odds? He threw his cigarette on the floor dramatically. For some reason, he wanted to be good for Monty. Or rather when he was around him. Sort of like how he was with King. He liked to think that Monty was a good influence. “Hey,” Ben tried to act casual, as if it was the norm to see him around here. “I’m really over this weather. I wouldn’t mind if the weather did a complete one eighty,” And that was true. He missed the warmth. “What are you doing around here?” He asked, hoping Monty wouldn’t inquire about him.